Saturday, February 11, 2012

15 Swoonworthy Velo-Valentines

Just over a week ago, I announced a Give-away for Valentine's Day - inviting readers to submit bicycle-themed Valentines for a chance to receive a beautiful, bright red Bobbin Birdie. Over 70 submissions were made, and I have looked at and read them all at least twice. All were beautiful and thoughtful, and I sincerely thank everybody for sharing them. I would now like to present 15 Valentines that, with difficulty, have been selected as the final entries. They are numbered (in no particular order) and your feedback is welcome. While this is not an outright "readers' choice" vote, your selections will be taken into consideration in the final decision. Thanks for looking, and enjoy!

3. "Bicroscopic Valentine." Submitted by Jessi: "Portraits sourced from the Commons, Bobbin Birdie bike, and original photograph of silk threads under glass slide, taken with a Nikon 1970's microscope mount. Everything but the silk fibres are halftoned, because that is how I roll."

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4. "Diamonds are a girl's best friend. But my valentine is a mixte." Submitted by Mindy: I wanted to draw a picture of my bike, because I do love my mixte! The text still works even if you're not familiar with the mixte/diamond frame thing (see what I did there?)."

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5. This evocative poem was submitted by Robin.

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6. "A day with... is better than a day without..." There is another side to this card, and it is shown here. Submitted by Willie Bailey.

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7. "Hip hoppin' & Bobbin' for you, Valentine!" Submitted by Julie: "My dog, Bonnie, is a little shy and eccentric, and is always the star of our "family" greeting cards. She was going to make a Valentine anyway, but she decided to go with a flashy Valentine theme in hopes of winning her dear mother, me, a pretty new Lady Bike."

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8. "All I want to do is make tricycles with you." A collage submitted by Michelle B.

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9. "The story, context, high-res sharable files (including vector) for anyone who wants to have fun and make their own for someone can be discovered here." Submitted by nandapocentric.

11. "The two things in this world that are true: my sturdy lugged frame and my love for you!" Submitted by LT: "When I read your latest post this morning I thought immediately of my favorite old family photo, so I added a few bits to the photo to make it a vintage-themed Valentine."

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12. A poem submitted by William B. The text reads:

"Said the front tire to the rear
Follow me; I’ll lead my dear.
Round and round we’ll roll together.
‘Cause when you push I steer better.
If miles from here the road’s not fair
We’ll just let out a little air.
I will not shimmy, I will stay true;
That is the promise I make to you.
At dusk, to emphasize our genders,
We’ll slip into some silver fenders.
Your tread is slick; your spokes are fine;
You’ll always be my valentine."

So, what do you think? List the numbers of the Valentine(s) that appeal to you in the comments, and your feedback will help determine the recipient. There are no rules by which to judge the Valentines, these things just sort of have to "hit" your love receptors. How much work went into making them is, of course, worth considering as well. The recipient will be announced on Valentine's Day, February 14th. Please feel free to contribute to the comments up to the eve of that date. Thank you everybody for looking, reading and participating. Have a lovely weekend!

I like #1, and its romantic use of cycling imagery (gearing up, being united like the links of a chain), also the contrast between the red background and the thunder strikes (a passing moment of bliss in the middle of troubled times - fortunately, the bicycle remains!)

#10 is nice too: it's an accessory ! It would be so sad and lonely without the matching bicycle. Surely you wouldn't set them apart on Valentine's day, would you?

#13 is something I would never have thought about: a much too round wheel carefully rebuilt as a heart on a truing stand. How boring would be life without its wobbles?

1, 14 and 3 are my favourites. I'm not so keen on the image for no 1, though it's cleverly done, but the quotation is simple and true! I love the image and simplicity of 14, and I love the suggestion of an exciting future in 3. Well done to everyone who contributed- there are some lovely ones!

I think #5 is my fave. What a beautiful poem. #12 doesn't give me the warm fuzzies in quite the same way, but it's really clever. I like #2 for its simplicity, and I think #11 is just plain cool. Lugged (steel) frame and true love? Wonderful. The more I think about these gems, the harder it gets to choose. Any one of them would be deserving.

I vote for 3 and 10 as joint top, and 13 as runner up. I'm impressed by the way the tactile qualities of the embroidery in 10 come across visually on the screen, which seems a very suitable way of replicating the joy of a lovely red bicycle.

These make me wish they all came in a little box set like the ones we used to give out in grade school. I'm pretty impressed by number 10, it's cute and elegant, and also number 11, because I'm sucker for the vintage bicycle photos.

2 and 10 with an honorable mention for 4. 2 is the most graphically appealing to me. I really appreciate the work involved in 10 and the execution is very nice. I LOVE the tag line from 4 and would like it on a T-shirt but I'm kind of ambivalent about the graphic.

#10 embroidered valentine. I think it is more universal than a cliché regarding sisterhood. It is strongly feminine because of this kind of needlework being traditionally a woman's craft. Whether this was made by a woman or a man it is a Valentine idea or expression worked over into the form of embroidery. It would be a valentine for all who love bikes. Brothers, sister,friend daughter,son, mother,father, co-habitant, neighbor or self. It also fits the Birdie bike.

#14 is just plain excellent! Love the colors, simplicity, and wonderful words!! I also love that it says "Happy Valentine's day" without conforming to the "red & hearts" way of doing things! It's unique & lovely!

I liked 2, 4, 5, and 12. I think my favorite was 4 for both picture and quip. 2 is a close second, and I just really like 5's poem and 12's. I also really like the picture for 11, but not really the text.

Not sure yet! There is one that appeals to me personally more than the others, but that does not seem like a fair way to make the selection. So I am mainly considering how "impactful" the valentines are and how much complexity/time/energy has likely gone into them.

Number #4 speaking here, I'm glad some of you like my drawing! It was a lot of work, and no small amount of time was spent in the kitchen bouncing bike-puns off my roommate. That being said, I'm also a huge embroidery nerd. I am in love with #10. Why can't my fill-stitches look that perfect? ;_;

I LOVE #12...Such cute comparisons and beautiful wording, But mostly because the author has been my Valentine for 34 Valentine's Days, and has written me many poems. He has traveled over 20,000 miles on his bicycle and now that he is retiring this year, I need to ride along for our next 34 years together, but I don't own a bicycle........ <3 <3 <3

#12 does a great job of comparing the relationship of a husband and wife as that of the tires of a bike. If a bike is missing a tire it's not going to function the way it should, just like a good marriage needs two people working as a team.

#3 here! I just wanted to drop a huge thank you to everyone who's visited my Flickr stream via this blog (I have had a serious amount of traffic coming from here. I checked my stats last night and was blown away) and left comments on my photos throughout. You're a seriously classy and friendly bunch, and I appreciate it. Clearly I'm at the right blog for venturing into the world of bicycles, complete with a fantastic community. And I really don't envy Velouria the hard decision she has to make (Though if I'm getting whooped, again I say let it be by 2 or 10!)

Park Girl here (#1). I just wanted to tell you about my submission. It's a collage made from Mountain Bike magazines, wire, beads, fabric, and a photo of Brigitte Bardot and Jean-Louis Trintignant. Thank you for all of the nice comments. I enjoyed making it! (Someone will have to enlighten me on the porn, I just don't see it.)

oh my heart, I ADORE #1!!! I love love love all of the different dimensions to it. It speaks "LOVE" in so many ways. I feel the power of the woman on the beautiful red bike, the intensity of the enviroment speaks volumes about the energy coursing through the couple....the red makes a dynamic statement with its many different shades and what can be done to make it any better??? Well lightening rods of bicycle chains of course!!! Out of all of the pictures, which are all noteworthy, I can really see that Park Girl put alot of time and creativity into that piece. I would buy this in a heartbeat and have it framed...just classic!

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